This document outlines the proposed poster designs for the film project "What The...?". It describes three poster designs: a teaser poster featuring a silhouette of Sarah Miller in a window, a theatrical poster showing the protagonist Imani walking down a dimly lit corridor with a baseball bat, and a quad poster with a mid-shot of Imani looking worried in a crowd. The designs aim to attract horror and teen audiences and position the film as a supernatural thriller set in the 1980s focusing on a strong black female protagonist protecting her brother. The posters will be advertised on social media, buses, shopping centers, and billboards to target the target demographic of 15-30 year olds.

1. PROJECT TITLE
What The...?
FORMAT & SIZES
1 x QUAD/QUAD CROWN THEATRICAL POSTER, SIZE 30 INCHES BY 40 INCHES (762 ×
1016 mm) (LANDSCAPE)
1 x ONE SHEET THEATRICAL POSTER, SIZE 27 INCHES BY 40 INCHES (686 × 1020 MM)
(PORTRAIT)
1 x ONE SHEET TEASER POSTER SIZE 27 INCHES BY 40 INCHES (686 × 1020 MM)
(PORTRAIT)
DESCRIPTION OF PRODUCT (ELEMENTS FEATURED)
The plot elements that I will feature in the teaser poster are when Sarah Miller is staring outside her
window. The reason I will be doing this is because I use Sarah Miller as misdirection during the
film making the audience think she is the antagonist, so by having her in this teaser poster it will
make the audience think instantly that there is something wrong with her by seeing this poster and
that she could possibly be the antagonist for the film before they have seen the film.
Then for the theatrical poster I will use the part where Imani is looking for her brother holding the
baseball bat walking down a dimly lit corridor. I will be doing this to create a sense of mystery for
the audience, making them want to know who this person is and where they are going. Also
having a dimly lit corridor fits the conventions of horror films and posters, it creates a dark and
eerie atmosphere hinting at the danger lying ahead of this character. But it also shows that this
character is fearless as they are on their own down this dimly lit corridor, but they are also being
smart by bringing a baseball bat for protection.
Lastly for the quad poster, I will then use the part where Imani is looking worried in the crowd of
people partying. I am using this part as the audience will finally be able to see Imani’s face but
also so that they can see how worried she is and want to know what it she has seen to make her
look so worried. Also, they will know that whatever it is that Imani saw lead her to get the
baseball bat and walk down the corridor in the theatrical poster.
OUTLINE OF STYLE
For the teaser poster it will be quite simple, minimalistic. I will use a black silhouette of a
suburban house that will be in the center of the page with which will be a red with maroon splats
for the background. I have done this as it will look like there are splatters of blood on blood
showing the danger, violence and death that will be in this film, it is also part of the horror poster
convention to use the colour red as I have seen this colour used in the Doctor Sleep poster I
researched. In the window of the house there will be a silhouette of a woman and in the other
windows and behind her will be a dull yellow shining bright. I have used the colour yellow to
symbolize a character losing control of oneself or to highlight the trauma a character is being put
through. It can also depict a shift in emotions or state of mind. This is fitting for Sarah Miller as
she suffers with sleepwalking because of an unknown reason, and she can’t control it. The title

2. will be in white, at the top of the poster along with the tagline in red underneath. Then right at the
bottom will be the release date in white. I feel that keeping this simple is good for a teaser poster
as this does not give much away but it will be enough to catch the audience's attention. By me
using the colours red and black in this poster it fits with the conventions of a horror poster which
will help tell the audience what genre this film will be instantly attracting one of the target
audiences, people who like horror films. Also, because I use Sarah Miller as misdirection during
the film making the audience think she is the antagonist, this will make them think instantly that
there is something wrong with her by seeing this poster and that she could possibly be the
antagonist for the film before they have seen the film. The way the house is angled will look like
it is looking down on the audience creating an uncomfortable eerie effect like the Insidious poster
where the house is looming over in the background.
For the theatrical poster, the main picture will cover the entire poster and it will be a dimly lit
corridor with the one of the main protagonists (Imani Richarson) going down the corridor, but you
cannot see her face and she is holding a baseball bat that is almost touching the floor. By having
her face hidden it will create a sense of mystery making the audience want to see her face, like the
Poltergeist poster that I researched. Also, the baseball bat hints that something dangerous is going
to happen as baseball bats are usually used as self-defense in horror films. Having the corridor
dimly lit adds an eerie effect to the poster, making the audience wonder what this character is
about to walk into. At the top will be the names of famous actors to entice the audience to watch
the film. The title will be near the bottom along with the tagline underneath it. Right at the bottom
of the poster will be the billing block and above it will be the release date. The overall design of
this poster is like the design for the Doctor Sleep poster because of how the protagonist is walking
down a corridor the only difference is the colour palette for my poster and the costume for the
protagonist will be a denim jacket, ripped denim jeans, a charcoal grey baggy top and scruffy
black and white Nike shoes. They will be wearing this because this will hint at the time this film
is set in, which is the 1980s, and at this time denim on denim was quite popular along with Nike
shoes. Also, her hair will be tied up as she is about to do something physical, because of the
baseball bat, it would make more sense having her hair up rather than down as her hair would get
in her face and showing that she is almost prepared for whatever it is she is walking into.
For the quad poster, the main image will be on the left-hand side of the poster. The image will be
Imani looking worried with a crowd of partying people and blurred party lights behind her. Imani
will be placed more towards the left-hand side of the poster so that the crowd of people and lights
goes to the right-hand side. Then on the top right-hand side of the page there will be the actors'
names in white. Then halfway down will be the title in white along with the tagline in red. Then
right at the bottom will be the release date along with the billing block again both being in white.
Imani’s costume will be the exact same as the one for the theatrical poster because the audience
will be able to recognize that this is the same character from the other poster, and they will get to
see her face. This poster is slightly like the Insidious poster where the focus is the boy as I will be
using a mid-shot as well for my protagonist. In this poster Imani’s hair will be down looking a bit
messy showing that she was in a rush that then she suddenly sees something that has worried her.
Also, it will show that she is not part of the party almost like it’s in the background and she’s
isolated because of what she has seen that noone else has seen.
Things that will be recurring in my theatrical and quad poster will be my protagonist, my teaser
poster is a bit different from the other two but by me keeping the tagline the same and making
sure that the title is noticeable in every poster so it will be easy to tell that they are all part of the
same campaign. The font will also stay the same for each of them and the font used for the title,
tagline etc. will stay the same so it does not confuse the audience.

3. IMAGE LIST & BRIEF DESCRIPTION
For the teaser poster with the house with Sarah Miller staring through the window, I want the
house to be taken at a low angle, so it looks like the house is looking down on the audience
creating an intimidating feel to the poster. This will also be an establishing shot as this shows one
of the settings that this film takes place also, because of this type of shot you will only be able to
see Sarah’s head and shoulders.
Then for the theatrical poster where the protagonist is walking down the dimly lit corridor with a
baseball bat in their hand, will be a long shot meaning that you can see the protagonist's whole
body and the way they are holding the bat. By doing this shot it exaggerates the long dark corridor
as these is one of the conventions of a classic horror movie making the audience feel uneasy as
you cannot see what is ahead of the protagonist. Furthermore, having the protagonist’s back
towards the audience will make them curious and want to know who this person is and why they
are holding a baseball. Also, their costume will help show the audience what era this film will be
set in, the 1980s because of how she wears denim on denim.
For the quad poster I will have a mid-shot of Imani looking worried with a crowd of partying
people and blurred party lights behind her. I will be using a mid-shot so that it can focus on
Imani’s face and emphasise on how worried she looks. Also, it can show her surroundings and
that she is in a party because of the shot I will be using. The juxtaposition of Imani looking
worried and the excitement of the party people/lights behind her would make the audience want to
know what it is that she has seen that has made her look so worried.
FONT LIST & BRIEF DESCRIPTION
The title of my film will be in Manticore brush font. I will be using this font because of how rugged
it looks and it instantly shows what genre this film will be, a horror film and it also hints at the
violence/suspense part of the film because of the roughness of the font.
The tagline will be in Exorcist - Horror Display Typeface font. This font will be used to hint at the
supernatural, demonic side of this film because of the rough geometric look which looks like
those classic demonic symbols like a pentagram etc. It also compliments the actual tagline itself,
‘it’s gonna be one hell of a night’ which again hints at the supernatural.
Billing block will be in Universal Accreditation. I will be using this font as this is the font that is
for the billing block of any movie poster which I have found out about in my poster research.
The actors' names and the date will be in Iron ranger font. This is because this font looks quite
like the Manticore brush font, which keeps to the horror genre of this film, and I did not want a
font that is hard to read otherwise the audience will lose interest.
HOW THE POSTERS WILL APPEAL TO THE AUDIENCE
By me having the protagonist an African-America teenage female this will instantly target the
teenager, female end of the audience and people of colour because they will feel that they are
being represented in the character. I have done this because both females and coloured people
have been shown as weak background characters, sex symbols or one of the characters that
always dies first in a horror film. But in my film, this will be different as my protagonist is a
coloured female and she will be presented as a strong young woman that has to save her younger

4. brother. It also shows the responsibility older siblings should have over their younger sibling if
their parents are not home, how hard it can be sometimes and that they would do anything to
make sure that they are safe. This will also automatically attract audiences, males and females,
that really enjoy horror films because of the use of colours in my poster (red, black, yellow, dull
colours). For teens the use of a teen protagonist will make them want to see the film as this will be
from the perspective of someone their own age meaning that they would be able to understand the
narrative and the way Imani sees things/behaves. I think that because this film even though the
characters' families are of the middle class, the film focuses more on teenagers so this film could
appeal to audiences of any class because of this.
MARKETING - HOW & WHERE THE POSTERS WILL BE ADVERTISED
These posters will be put on social media, mainly Instagram as this is the main social media
platform that most teens/young adults (15- to 30-year-olds) use. The only problem is that if they
are not following the page for this film, not enough people will see it therefore they will also need
to be put outside in public places. However, most people would be following Netflix as they are
now a well-known company, and they would also advertise the release of this film so quite a lot
of people will see/know about it.
One place that would be effective to put these posters would be bus stops and on buses this is
because some teens/young adults enjoy going out with friends and when going in groups they
might take a bus or walk meaning that if they stand at or walk pass a bus stop, they will see the
poster and can look at it closely. Also, because buses are almost everywhere people will see them
but will only be able to look at it properly if the bus is not moving.
Another good place to put these posters is in shopping centers as again a lot of teens/young adults
will go there to go shopping or just wander about with friends. Again, with this it will be easy for
people to see and have a close look at.
Billboards will be a good place to put my quad posters as these are usually placed in high traffic
areas, like along highways and in cities. This would be good to attract an older audience of 20- to
30-year-olds as most of them would have learnt how to drive therefore may end up being stuck in
traffic and by them seeing this poster they will be intrigued and will want to watch it.
POSITION IN THE MARKETPLACE

5. From my poster research I have learnt that in every poster there should be the title of the film,
release date, tagline, names of certain actors, sometimes the directors name and a main image. For
teaser trailers there should only be a main image along with title, tagline, and the release date this
is done to catch the audience's attention without giving too much information. Then for the
theatrical and quad poster it should have all the information, title, tagline, release date, director,
main image, and billing block these will show a little bit more by having the actor's names and a
different image, but it still does not give too much away as they want the audience to watch the
film when it is released without spoiling the plot or ending.
From researching supernatural horror posters, I have seen that the conventions of these posters are
that they are usually ominous and has negative space like the Poltergeist poster, which will be
reflected in my teaser poster. Also, I have seen that in some horror posters like the one for
Insidious the colours are very dull and dark giving an eerie feeling to the poster this will be
reflected in my theatrical poster where my protagonist is walking down the dimly lit corridor.
This is also like the Doctor Sleep poster where the protagonist is walking down the corridor.
Furthermore, the different uses of shots for the horror posters, some have been done at a low
angle to assert dominance over the audience making them feel uncomfortable, mid shots have
been used to focus on a character's face and their clothing to hint at their personality, whether they
are the protagonist or the antagonist, like the Insidious poster I researched. I will be using the mid
shot for my quad poster, to focus on the facial expression of Imani, but you can still see what she
is wearing. The low angle shot will be used for the teaser poster where Sarah Miller is staring out
her window hinting that she has bad intentions in this film, but this is a misdirection to make the
audience think they know who the antagonist is.
Also, from researching these posters usually the main image covers the entire poster like the
Doctor Sleep and Insidious poster, which is reflected in my theatrical and quad poster, unlike my
teaser poster where the main image is roughly in the middle of the poster like the Poltergeist
poster I researched. Insidious used social media extensively to promote their film for their fans to
see.
What would also be a good idea is to have a baseball brand, like MLB, to help promote this film
and have them as a sponsor so that fans of the film and baseball can buy baseball caps, jerseys and
jackets and this make more people want to watch the film.